How can the legislative branch check the judicial branch of the US government?

Jackson A.

Answer:

(the judicial branch) in three ways.
The first way the legislature can check the power of the Supreme Court is the most common: holding confirmation hearings for nominees to the Court. It is the President’s duty under the Constitution to nominate qualified people to the Supreme Court when it has a vacancy. However, the Senate must confirm the nominees before they can join the Court. The Senate therefore has some control over who becomes a Supreme Court judge, as they can refuse to confirm nominees who are unqualified. Because the Senate is a political body, this also means that a party with a majority in the Senate can exercise this confirmation power to only appoint nominees who they agree with politically. Overall, this power is important because it can shift the ideological balance of the Court, which in turn has an effect on how the Constitution is interpreted in future cases.
The second check on the judicial branch exercised by the legislature is less frequently seen. This is the power to overturn Supreme Court precedents by amending the US Constitution. Normally if the Supreme Court holds that a law should be interpreted in a certain way this interpretation becomes the new law of the land unless and until the Court itself chooses to change its interpretation. However, if Congress disagrees with this interpretation it can propose an amendment to the Constitution to overturn the Supreme Court’s decision. To propose an amendment, two thirds of both the House of Representatives and the Senate must agree that one is necessary. The amendment must then be ratified by three fourths of states, either by their legislatures or at ratifying conventions. This power has not yet been used to overturn a Supreme Court decision, but it remains an option for Congress.
The final check available to Congress is to alter the funding of the Court, as it decides how to allocate funding. In an extreme case, it would be possible for the legislature to defund the Court entirely. However, this has never happened and would likely have serious political consequences, possibly triggering a constitutional crisis.

Pre-law

TutorMe

Question:

What is the relationship between the Supreme Court and the other branches of the US government?

Jackson A.

Answer:

The US Supreme Court is the nation’s highest court. The Justices of the Court decide appeals from lower courts and have the final say on whether or not a given law is constitutional. As such, the relationship between the Court and the legislative and executive branches is primarily one of review. Simply put, it is the duty of the Supreme Court to ensure that the laws passed by Congress and the President comply with the US Constitution. This means that Supreme Court justices must interpret and apply the Constitution to specific cases. By doing so, the Court acts as a check on the power of the other two branches.
Although it is technically the Constitution which limits the law-making power of the legislative and executive branches, in practice this is guaranteed by the Supreme Court. Specifically, the Supreme Court guarantees that laws passed by the other two branches are constitutional by using the power of judicial review. Judicial review simply refers to the process by which the Supreme Court reviews the constitutionality of a law. If a law passed by Congress is found to be unconstitutional it can be invalidated (or “struck down”) by the Supreme Court with immediate effect. By using this power, the Supreme Court guarantees that the rights laid out in the Constitution cannot be infringed by government action.
It is important to note that the power of judicial review was never explicitly given to the Court by the Constitution. However, in the landmark case of Marbury v Madison the Court found that it must have the power to invalidate unconstitutional acts of the legislature or executive. In practice, it is now an essential part of the relationship between the Court and the other two branches of government.
Overall, the relationship between the Supreme Court and the other two branches of the US government is defined by the Court’s role as a sort of “constitutional umpire”. By reviewing the laws passed by Congress and the President, the Supreme Court guarantees that the other branches are playing by the rules set out in the Constitution.

Send a message explaining yourneeds and Jackson will reply soon.

Contact Jackson

Ready now? Request a lesson.

Start Session

FAQs

What is a lesson?

A lesson is virtual lesson space on our platform where you and a tutor can communicate.
You'll have the option to communicate using video/audio as well as text chat.
You can also upload documents, edit papers in real time and use our cutting-edge virtual whiteboard.

How do I begin a lesson?

If the tutor is currently online, you can click the "Start Session" button above.
If they are offline, you can always send them a message to schedule a lesson.

Who are TutorMe tutors?

Many of our tutors are current college students or recent graduates of top-tier universities
like MIT, Harvard and USC.
TutorMe has thousands of top-quality tutors available to work with you.